# Why do we say "dot com"?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-dot-com/69957>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 24, 2001, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-dot-com/69957 "2001-06-24T10:11:41Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Ms2001](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ms2001/32/18463_2.png) [@Ms2001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms2001)\
**Post date:** [June 25, 2001, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-dot-com/69957/21 "2001-06-25T21:03:11Z")

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> **[Slashdot: News for nerds, stuff that matters](https://slashdot.org)**
>
> Slashdot: News for nerds, stuff that matters. Timely news source for technology related news with a heavy slant towards Linux and Open Source issues.

h t t p colon slash slash dot dot org

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**Author:** ![wevets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9a140/32.png) [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)\
**Post date:** [June 25, 2001, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-dot-com/69957/22 "2001-06-25T21:12:17Z")

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Shouldn’t that be h t t p colon slash slash slash dot dot org, Mr2001?

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**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2001, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-dot-com/69957/23 "2001-06-26T00:17:23Z")

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I just learned to call the backslash character “whack”.

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**Author:** ![black\_rabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@black\_rabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/black_rabbit)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2001, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-dot-com/69957/24 "2001-06-26T05:23:37Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Weird\_AL\_Einstein \*  
> \*\*On a related note, a few years ago I was on the phone with a rep from my bank, getting account information. He was giving me my account balance, and he actually said “dot” instead of “point”. I was dumbstruck. Is “dot” starting to creep into the world of numbers now?  
> \*\*

It is at the library.

When patrons call me with the Dewey Decimal numbers already in hand, I’ve noticed that they’ve started to say “364 dot 152309 A145” rather than “364 point 152309 A145.” Sometimes, it gets really irritating.

The first poster to tell me what subject 364.152309 refers to gets bonus, uh, points.

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**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2001, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-dot-com/69957/25 "2001-06-26T05:50:37Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by black455 \*  
> The first poster to tell me what subject 364.152309 refers to gets bonus, uh, points.

Lizzie Borden.

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**Author:** ![Gaudere](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e495f1/32.png) [@Gaudere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gaudere)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2001, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-dot-com/69957/26 "2001-06-26T06:12:02Z")

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Brad Templeton, of Rec.humor.funny fame, has some interesting information about [the origin of the “dot-com”.](http://www.templetons.com/brad/dot.html)

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**Author:** ![yojlik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ad7895/32.png) [@yojlik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojlik)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2001, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-dot-com/69957/27 "2001-06-26T10:02:57Z")

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Earth revolution time in rotational dots, um, periods.

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